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Q1. Describe the information processing theory of how performers produce and
control actions. Use a sporting example to support your answer.
The Information Processing Theory is the model of thinking where the human brain
and its ability to process information is thought of as similar to that of a computer.
The theory revolves around the idea that the human brain takes an input (a stimulus
or several stimuli) from the surrounding environment and produces an output
relevant to the situation that the individual is being placed under. To reach this
output, the relevant stimuli are processed through several stages of the model in
order to reach a final outcome. This process is handled by the central nervous
system (CNS) (McMorris, 2004).
The first portion of the Information Processing Theory utilises the sensory memory of
an individual. At this stage information taken in from the environment is not displayed
in conscious thought. The reason for this is that the sheer amount of stimuli that is
presented to the senses would be far too much to process individually. The sensory
memory acts as a filter, only allowing relevant stimuli to be processed. What stimuli
are considered relevant is flexible, with the sensory memory only selecting
information directly relevant to the task at hand. This is also known as selective
attention. A sporting example of this could be seen in table tennis. As a shot is
played towards a player, his/her sensory memory takes into account the relevant
information displayed to them (ball trajectory, speed, spin and the positioning of the
opponent), at the expense of other stimuli (for example crowd noise or room
temperature). This pertinent information is then passed along into conscious thought.
Once the relevant information has been selected by the sensory memory, the
information is now within the realms of the short term memory. The broad process of
selecting relevant information is referred to as the perceptual mechanism. This is the
beginning of the process of using conscious thought to provide an outcome to a
situation with which the individual is faced. At this point, the decision making process
starts. In order to make these decisions, an athlete will attempt to compare the
stimuli presented to him/her and currently present in their short term memory to
previous experiences stored in the long term memory. It goes without saying that a
novice athlete will more often than not produce less effective outcomes than an
athlete of a higher level of experience, purely based on the fact that the novice will
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have less relevant information (stored in the long term memory) available to him/her
to deal with the task (Hodges & Williams, 2012). This can again be related to table
tennis. The performer has taken into account the relevant information and now has
to decide exactly how to return the ball based on what is presented by the
opponents shot. In order to return the shot, the performer must draw on past
experience to select the appropriate shot and execute it. This then produces
immediate sensory feedback based on factors such as the success or failure of the
shot to provide the desired response. This is known as exteroception (taking in
information from external sources).
The control of such actions is controlled by feedback loops. Fast movements, such
as the shots played in table tennis, are controlled by open loop control. This is
because the movements are fluid and executed quickly. Open loop control does not
utilise intrinsic feedback to perform the movement, it instead uses pre-programmed
motor responses.
References
McMorris, T., (2004). Acquisition and Performance of Sports Skills. 1st ed. England:
John Wiley & Sons.
Hodges, N. J., Williams, A. M., (2012). Skill acquisition in sport: research, theory and
practice. 1st ed. England: Routledge.
Saul

McLeod

(2008). Information

Processing.

[ONLINE]

Available

at:

http://www.simplypsychology.org/information-processing.html. [Last Accessed

10/11/12].

Q2. Short term and long term memory have a number of specific characteristics.
Describe these characteristics and discuss how you would take account of two of
these when coaching children.
Schmidt & Wrisberg (2000) states that the most commonly accepted theory of short
term memory is a derivative of the stage theory put forward by Atkinson and Shiffrin
in 1968. The three overarching characteristics of short term memory can briefly be
summarised.

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The idea that short term memory has a limited capacity for storage stems from
research by Miller (1956). Miller proposed that the average adult can store between
five and nine items in their short term memory. This lead to the accepted norm being
seven items (plus or minus two), based on his theory that the short term memory had
a certain capacity of seven slots in which information can be stored.
Research conducted by Atkinson and Shiffrin (1971) suggests that short term
memory has a limited duration in which information can be stored. In their multi store
model they proposed that the duration that information is stored in the short term
memory is between zero and eighteen seconds. They also proposed that this can be
rehearsed by repeating the information verbally.
Furthermore, the notion that the storage of information by type in the short term
memory is dictated by the multi store model proposed by Atkinson and Shiffrin in
1971. The model proposed that information encoded in the short term memory is
mainly auditory, although there are exceptions where visual information is passed on
to the long term memory.
Considerations based on research into short term memory and its application into
the coaching of children could be demonstrated by the utilisation of the primary and
recency effect (Atkinson & Shiffrin, 1968). This combination of effects dictates that
information relayed to children is more likely to be recalled if it is at the beginning or
the end of a list. In order to take advantage of this, a coach may want to place the
points that are most pertinent to the situation and the beginning and end of the
statement. The practical application of this principle would be to construct points in
brief and simple sentences (less than 7 points would be the ideal for this situation)
(Miller, 1956).
The main characteristics of long term memory (LTM) dictate that different types of
information are stored in categories. The two categories are referred to as
declarative and procedural (Cohen & Squire, 1980) (Anderson, 1987). The most
relevant characteristic in regards to the coaching of children is procedural memory,
or the memory storage of skills and procedures. Declarative memory however, is
also relevant as it consists of the storage of information that can be expressed, such
as the learning of rules, or the information of tactics passed on to the participant.

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Many actions in sport consist of both procedural and declarative memory

procedures, for example in a boxing match, the participant would have to remember
the correct rules and tactics stored in the LTM, but also retrieve procedural memories
in order to execute the correct motor skills such as throwing or blocking punches
(Schmidt & Wrisberg, 2000). For a coach working with children, this would be applied
using research by Ebbinghaus (1885) who found that long term memory is more
likely to be recalled if the exposure to that memory is prolonged (Schmidt &
Wrisberg, 2000). This means that to expect children to consistently recall both
declarative and procedural memory may be unrealistic unless the skills and tactics
are practiced regularly and over a large period of time.
References
Schmidt, R. A., & Wrisberg, C. A. (2000). Motor learning and performance. A problem
based approach (2nd Ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Saul

McLeod

(2009). Short

Term

Memory.

[ONLINE]

http://www.simplypsychology.org/short-term-memory.html.

Available
[Last

at:

Accessed

9/11/2014].
Saul McLeod (2007). Multi Store Model of Memory. [ONLINE] Available at:
http://www.simplypsychology.org/multi-store.html. [Last Accessed 9/11/2014].

Q3. As learners practice they progress through a series of motor learning stages.
Through reference to Fitts and Posners (1967) model of motor learning, describe
these stages and the associated learner characteristics.
Fitts and Posners model of motor learning consists exclusively of three stages of
learning that each individual progresses through as they learn a given skill. The first
of these three hierarchical stages is known as the cognitive stage. This is the very
beginning of the process of motor learning and is where the fundamentals of the skill
being learnt are attempted by the practitioner. According to the model proposed by
Fitts and Posner, the cognitive stage requires the largest amount of practice time
(Schmidt & Wrisberg, 2000). At this stage, the performers movements will often be
erratic and with little consistency. As the performer is new to the movement or skill
being learnt, there will be high levels of concentration and a large amount of trial and
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error involved within their movements. This is seen when the performer attempts to
find out the best technique for the task at hand, so high levels of variability will be
seen in movements. Schmidt (1991) found that alongside this, a significant
proportion of learners engage in verbal cueing of their movements, allowing them to
guide themselves through the skill being practiced. During this stage, the learner will
see the largest advances in their technique, as Schmidt (1991) proposed that this
was due to the trial and error approach to ascertaining which movements were the
most appropriate for the skill being learnt.
The second stage of this model is known as the associative stage of learning. As the
participants level of capability grows, the skill being performed becomes more fluid
and results are more consistent. At this point, further development of the skill occurs
as the learner still employs a small amount of trial and error in an effort to refine the
skill being used (Schmidt, 1991). The main difference in this stage as opposed to the
cognitive stage, other than the increased amount of proficiency in movement, is the
ability of the performer to begin to read situations presented to them and extract the
appropriate cues and act on them.
The final stage of the motor learning process according to Fitts and Posner is known
as the autonomous stage. As the name indicates, this is where movements become
ingrained in the learner and performance of skill occurs automatically. According to
McMorris (2004), movements at this stage require very little cognitive activity. This
allows performers to utilise cues from their environment more without having to think
about the actual skill they are performing, enabling them to read situations within
team sports for example more thoroughly, therefore translating to higher levels of
performance. However, at this stage, due to the level of development of the skills
being learned, movement patterns involved within each skill are very difficult to alter
or correct (McMorris, 2004). Therefore it is imperative that skilled coaching is
incorporated from the beginning of the cognitive phase in order to ensure that
athletes learn the correct motor patterns for their sport, as it may be too late to alter
these once the associative stage has been passed.
References
Schmidt, R. A., & Wrisberg, C. A. (2000). Motor learning and performance. A problem
based approach (2nd Ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
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McMorris, T., (2004). Acquisition and Performance of Sports Skills. 1st ed. England:
John Wiley & Sons.